


The Tale of Life and Death

by PurpleSnowstorm215



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Use of ocs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-16
Updated: 2017-08-16
Packaged: 2018-12-15 22:06:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11815137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PurpleSnowstorm215/pseuds/PurpleSnowstorm215
Summary: Gabriel Reyes (aka. The Spirit of Death) has loved Jack Morrison (aka. The Spirit of Life) for as long as he can remember.So of course they both rule over Kingdoms that aren't quite at war with one another but certainly don't get along.Loving someone you haven't seen in centuries isn't easy but maybe with luck, things will change.





	1. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we learn about the world our tale is set in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pls enjoy this piece of garbage  
> ive never finished a multi-fic before so here we go lol
> 
> i wrote this at like 5am bc im a mess and this is completely un-beta'd

The Kingdoms of Overton and Blackridge were in total opposites. Ruled respectively by the Spirits of Life and Death themselves.

Overton was a Kingdom filled with creatures and spirits of light. Nymphs, faeries, elves, and any light creature one could think of. 

Blackridge was filled with creatures of dark. Wraiths, werewolves, sirens. The two lists could go on and on. 

The inhabitants of both kingdoms could agree however, that each other was the worst kingdom. There was no feud between the kingdoms but with so many differences between the two, to expect zero prejudice would be foolish. 

The two rulers saw the prejudices but saw no truth to them. They knew each other. The two had been friends for years when they were younger and such important duties had not been part of their lives. The sons of Light and Dark had been friends long before the responsibilities of kings had come to them. 

Now with so many people to take care of, the two never had time to see each other. Excuses and responsibilities getting in the way and before they knew it, centuries had passed since they’d last seen each other. 

Even with the distance and time separating them, life missed death and death missed life.


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we meet Death and Death meets a fox.

Gabriel stifled the sigh that threatened to escape him as he listened to whatever the hell problem was happening in the Kingdom now. For a Kingdom at peace, there sure was a lot of issues. Most of it just people unable to agree on anything. He’d say it was a waste of time but settling some annoying squabbles was better than having a kingdom at war. He’d heard enough stories of the past from his father… War was definitely something he did not want to deal with.

The king couldn’t help but let his mind wander, thinking about Jack and wondering what the other was doing right now. Gods he missed him… It’d been too long since they’d seen each other… He hoped he was doing alright… Hoped that ruling wasn’t taking its toll on him. Jack had never liked having to be leader when they were kids. More content with following with Gabe’s suggestions and ideas while contributing every so often.

He blinked slightly when his name was spoken. Or his title at least. He glanced at the advisor who was running today’s issues, the man looking at him sheepishly before he spoke “Are you feeling quite alright your majesty?”

Gabriel grunted slightly in response before he spoke “… I think I need some time to myself.”

The man nodded before he looked between the two werewolves that had brought their issue to be solved “The King will resolve your issue tomorrow after he has had some rest. The guards will escort you out.”

As the two wolves were led out by the guards, Gabriel rose to his feet without a word and stalked off to the private gardens he had. He knew the advisor wouldn’t even bother trying to get his attention. The gardens were private and his alone. No one else but a single gardener he trusted was allowed to enter.

He sighed as he sat on one of the various benches scattered around the garden. He looked around, eyes drinking in the sight of the various flowers and the large tree that stood in the centre of the garden. The plants weren’t neatly trimmed like they were elsewhere around the palace grounds. Here everything was just a touch wild, the way Gabriel liked it. The rose bushes a little overbearing but nothing too out of sorts. The gardener did his job well. He was trusted for a reason.

His eyes closed, breathing in the sweetness of the flowers and the sound of nothing but the soft chirping of birds and the wind rustling through the leaves of the plants.

Death’s eyes opened when he heard rustling that was noisier than he was used to here in his gardens. His gaze landed on the tree, sharp ears quickly determining the source of the noise was in his tree.

He scowled before he stood up, hand resting on the tilt of the sword at his side before he cautiously made his way forward towards the tree. Once he was within arms reach he spoke, voice gruff and threatening “Who’s there?”

The King blinked as he heard rustling before a dirtied face popped out of all the leaves. He took in light, almost white blond hair (a completely different to Jack’s gorgeous golden hair that reminded him of the sun). The male’s eyes were dark green, similar to the leaves his face was surrounded in (Jack’s own were blue as the sky). The next thing he noticed was the large black tipped orange ears perched atop his head. A fox spirit perhaps?

Either way, he wasn’t meant to be here. Gabriel frowned up at him before he spoke “You’re not allowed to be here. Now get out of the tree.”

The fox pouted at him before his face disappeared back into the tree. Gabriel opened his mouth to yell at the other when the fox dropped out of the tree and onto the ground in front of him.

He straightened up, peering up at the king before he spoke “Hello.”

Gabriel raised an eyebrow, noting the strange robe he saw the other wearing as most from the Far East Kingdoms did (except the skirt of it seemed to be shorter, probably so he could climb, and the sleeves practically swamped his hands), the bare feet and the three tails coming from behind him. So a kitsune… Not just any old fox spirit. Although, kitsunes weren’t common around here. They were found more in the east… So what was a kitsune doing here? On his property no less.

“Do you even know who I am?”

“Nope.”

“I’m the King. As in, you’re trespassing on /my/ property.”

“Oh. Well I didn’t know this was your property. I’m sorry…?” His head tilted sheepishly.

Gabriel should have been angry about this kitsune being here in his private garden but… It was somewhat refreshing to have someone not quivering in fear at the mere sight of him. He decided that maybe the fox wasn’t so bad.

He sighed before he spoke, hand falling off the hilt of his sword “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. What’s your name?”

The fox smiled at him, an ear twitching slightly “Michi. What’s yours?”

“Gabriel. Gabriel Reyes. Nice to meet you Michi.”

“Nice to meet you too!” Both fell silent for a few moments, Michi unsure of how to carry on while Gabriel began to get lost in his thoughts of Jack again.  
The fox nibbled his lip before he spoke “So what were you brooding over?”

Gabriel blinked before he spoke, a scowl on his face “I was not brooding.”

“Yes you were. You were sat on that bench and staring off while looking all grumpy. So what were you thinking about?”

Gabriel stared at him before he spoke, a sigh leaving him. The kitsune wouldn’t judge him that much for it right? He wasn’t from around here.  
“I was thinking about someone I uh… Like. A lot. I don’t get to see him much since he’s in the other kingdom.”

“So you love him then?” He frowned, head tiling in confusion before he spoke “I don’t get it, why don’t you just go see him? Aren’t you the king here? You can do what you like right?”

Gabriel shook his head, moving towards the bench to sit down while the fox followed after him “I can’t… It’s the uh… King of the other kingdom. And our people don’t like each other very much.”

“Oh... Then… I’m sorry you can’t see each other. But… Can’t you just get married and then that’s it?” He drew his legs up, crossing them on the bench as he shifted to outright face the King.

Gabriel shook his head again, “It would be great if it was that easy but again, our people wouldn’t be up for that.” He rubbed the back of his neck, speaking again with a sigh “It’s complicated. It’s hard for us to even get in contact. We see each other every few centuries? Meetings to discuss trading and boring stuff between the kingdoms. We don’t get to really talk about what we want. It’s been a few centuries since the last meeting.”

Michi nodded slowly, the gears clearly turning in the trickster’s head before he spoke “What if… What if I got messages to him for you?”

The king stared at him in somewhat shock “What?”

Michi huffed, tail fluffing up defensively “I could do it! I got in here didn’t I?!”

Gabriel shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose “No that's not what I meant... I just… Why would you want to help us? You have nothing to do with this and it wouldn’t benefit you at all.” He raised an eyebrow “And I know little about kitsunes but aren’t you all… More about helping yourself?”

Michi pouted “Not all of us! Besides," The orange ears flattened against his head "It seems sad that you don’t get to talk to each other... I want to help.”

Gabriel frowned, thinking to himself about the idea. It would be nice if he and Jack could get to communicating again but… It would also put Michi at risk and he couldn’t ask that of the kitsune. However it was clear he was clever. He wouldn’t have been able to get into the gardens otherwise. Getting to Jack would be easy for the fox right?

The King sighed, the desire and desperation for any solution to be able to talk to Jack overwhelming him before he spoke “Alright fine. What’s your plan?”

Michi had been waiting impatiently for the other’s answer, a grin breaking out onto his face in excitement “It’s simple! Just listen up…” He leaned forward eagerly, Gabriel following suit as the two began their plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> any feedback is greatly appreciated (like seriously do people like michi or)
> 
> hope u enjoyed!
> 
> work is unbeta'd and garbage


	3. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life meets a fox and gets some mail.

Jack sighed where he sat in his study. He'd been working all day, looking over various documents all for the Kingdom such as trading routes and well... Everything pretty much.

He sighed once more, putting the quill he was using to write down on the desk before he leaned back in his chair with a groan. He scrubbed a hand down his face before he jumped when he heard knocking at his window. Which... Should have been impossible. His study was high up...

The King quickly got up, looking at the window curiously before he blinked at the sight that met him.

A fox.

Crouched on the tree outside his window.

What on Earth...? He had to be dreaming.  
He rubbed his eyes, pleading for his sanity that the fox couldn't be there before he opened his eyes again. Yep. The fox was still there...

Jack curiously opened the window but kept his distance, feeling a little unnerved from the cheerful smile on the fox's face. "Hi!" He almost flinched at the cheery tone of the other's voice before he spoke "Uh... Hello. Who are you?"

"Are you the King? Uhhh... King... Jack! That was his name!"

"I might be. But I can't just tell you in case you're trying to kill the King. So who are you and what do you want?"

The fox huffed at Jack, a pout on his face while his ears and tails puffed with irritation "No! I can't tell you, I have to tell the King. It's important. I'm only allowed to tell the King. And I'm not here to kill him either." He wrinkled his nose "That would be... The opposite of what I need to do."

Jack sighed slightly, resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose in irritation before he spoke "Alright... I'm the King. Jack Morrison, King of Kingdom Overton. Now, what did you need to tell me?"

The fox grinned happily at him, a mischievous glint in his eyes that Jack could tell meant some sort of trouble. He giggled before he spoke "I knew you were the King. He was all lovey about your hair and your eyes and how pretty you were. It was easy to see that it was you."

Ah.  
There it was.  
Infamous trickster behaviour. 

Luckily it wasn't anything too devious like he'd heard kitsunes being. Just somewhat annoying behaviour.

He couldn't help the irritation that bled into his voice "If you knew I was the King then why did you ask? And who talked about me like that...?" 

The fox smiled at him "Can I come in? I don't want to tell you while I'm in this tree! Someone might hear! It's meant to be secret." His tone hushed to a whisper at the end.

Jack frowned before he spoke, sighing again "Alright, come on in."  
He raised an eyebrow as the fox gestured to move away from the window before he watched the other leap from the tree branch he had been perched upon to the window, a small panicked wail escaping the fox as he hung half in the window, almost falling out as he stared at Jack with wide eyes.  
Jack quickly darted forward to haul the fox in (he was surprisingly light) before he closed the window behind him. 

The fox smiled gratefully at Jack from where he had tumbled onto the floor after the other had roughly pulled him in before he spoke, "Thank you!" He shifted into an upright position, tails swishing behind him "Normally I can make jumps like that. I guess was wrong about how far away it was." The fox laughed, the sound high and infectious and Jack couldn't help but smile at it.

Remembering why the fox seemed to be here, he cleared his throat awkwardly before he offered his hand to help the fox up.  
The King smiled slightly at how distracted the other seemed to be as he peered around Jack's office with curiosity on his face before he prompted gently "Did you have something for me...?"

The fox looked back at him, an almost surprised expression on his face before a look of realisation lit up his face "Oh yeah!" His left hand dipped into the arm hole of his right sleeve before he pulled out a letter (how it had fit in there without crumpling Jack had no idea. Most likely kitsune magic) and held it out to the other "Here you go!"  
With his task seemingly done he wandered around Jack's office, looking at everything as Jack went to his desk to retrieve his letter opener.

The King sat down, a frown on his face as he looked over the front of the envelope. The writing was cursive and sweeping and one he recognised as Gabriel's. Why would he go to such efforts to get a letter to him using such a possibly untrustworthy method when he could have just sent royal correspondence...? The envelope wasn't decorated in any usual way that royal correspondence was either. So what was the need for it? 

Jack shook his head before grabbing his letter opener. Hopefully, Gabriel would say in the letter. 

He cut open the top of the envelope before pulling out the letter, unfolding the crisp piece of paper before he was reading it:

_'Dear Jackie,_

_I hope you get this quickly. Michi promised that he'd be quick about it. That's the fox by the way in case he's forgotten to tell you. He gets distracted by everything pretty easily._

_Either way, I hope you're doing well. It's been a while since we talked huh? Having to wait for the next peace keeping meeting was getting on my nerves and I want to be able to talk to you about whatever I want and not have servants fawning all over us._

_I don't have much to say in this letter since I wasn't even sure if this would make it to you. But I hope you're doing well and I hope things are going easy for you... Things can't be easy for you if your people are being finicky with one another like mine are._

_Either way, advice is here if you ever need it for anything alright? Don't handle things alone. Even talk to Michi if you have to. When he's not distracted by everything he can be pretty eloquent. Hell, he was the one who came up with this plan for us to communicate._

_Crazy right? But the kid's a kitsune and he definitely lives up to the trickiness of them. He was up in the tree in the gardens when I found him. Safe to say, the kid can get anywhere._

_I'll stop rambling now and let you write a reply. Just write it, give it to Michi, let him stay a night to rest and feed him and then just give him something shiny as a payment. I'll pay you back for it all if you want but the fox likes shiny things so I figured it's the least we could do right?_

_I'll be waiting for your reply,_

_Gabriel Reyes'_

Jack smiled as he finished reading the letter. So Gabe wanted to communicate but without having to deal with royal correspondence... That made sense. Too much might end up being seen as possible threats of war when in reality it was just the two talking. It was frustrating they couldn't just meet up but... That was how things were. 

He glanced over to Michi, smiling slightly as the fox seemed to be distracted by a few of the polished swords he had mounted on the wall. The fox seemed sweet enough... He'd ask more on why he wanted to help after he was finished writing his response to Gabriel. 

\---

Jack groaned slightly as he stretched, having spent a while thinking on what he'd wanted to write to the other but he had managed it. He smiled as he sealed the letter into an envelope before he spoke, aiming to catch the fox's attention "Gabe mentioned that you'd deliver this back to him...?"

Michi looked at the other before he nodded, wandering over to hold his hand out for the letter before hid it back in his sleeve "Yep yep. It'll take me five days to get back though so you'll have to wait though." 

Jack nodded, a frown on his face before he spoke, "Why help us if it takes you so long to get back and forth?" It took at least three days to travel between the two Kingdoms and that was on horseback and barely with any resting...  
If anything this whole thing was troublesome for the fox. So why bother right? 

Michi shrugged casually "I don't have anything better to do... And it's fun to be apart of it." He grinned at the other.

"Don't you have any friends or family to visit? Anything to do? I know kitsunes mostly come from the Eastern Kingdoms..." 

He shook his head "No... Not really. I'm on my own." He shrugged a shoulder "I thought it'd be fun to explore the other Kingdoms so that's why I'm here."

Jack nodded "I see... Gabriel mentioned that you'd need the night to rest up...?" 

Michi nodded, looking a little bashful "Yes, please... If you don't mind?" His head tilted questioningly, ears flattening against his head. 

Jack nodded with a soft chuckle "Of course. I'll get you something to eat too. Do you need anywhere specific to sleep...?" 

The fox shook his head "No. In here is even fine. A blanket would be nice too...?" 

"Of course. Are you sure you don't want a bed though? We've got plenty." 

Michi shook his head "No it's fine! I've slept in trees and on the forest floor before, your office isn't that bad." He smiled "It's even inside! It's even better!" 

Jack frowned slightly before he nodded "Alright then... If you say so. But I'll get you something to eat." 

Michi nodded "Thank you!" Before he went back to wandering around Jack's office and looking around. 

The King nodded before he went down to the kitchens (a surprisingly uncommon thing for the King since he tended to wander all reaches of the castle when he was thinking) before he got a variety of things for the fox to eat. He wasn't exactly sure what kitsunes ate... Meat for sure but... He wasn't sure what specifically. 

He quickly took the loaded plate up back up to his study before he put the plate down on the desk "Here. I wasn't sure what you'd like so I just picked a number of things." 

Michi nodded, having already made his way to the desk to peer at the food and was already picking from the plate before he spoke around a mouthful of dried meat "Thank you!"

Jack nodded, smiling a little before he spoke "Do you... Do you mind if I ask a few questions about Gabriel?" 

The fox sat on the floor, taking the plate with him before he shook his head at Jack's question while he stuffed his face "No go ahead." 

The King sat back in his chair before he began to speak, the two spending the rest of the evening playing question and answer. Jack mostly asking about Gabriel and how he was while Michi asked about both their Kingdoms and the different people he had seen.

It wasn't until Jack was in bed and about to drift off did he realise that Michi had mentioned Gabriel had called him pretty. And had apparently lamented about his hair and eyes. The King felt heat rise to his cheek before he was burying his face in the blankets. 

It took Jack about an hour to fall asleep after that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a lot of random talking and not a lot of stuff happening so i really hope people enjoyed this chapter??  
> idk anymore i have no idea what im doing lol
> 
> also uploads are gonna go to uploads on a monday GMT time bc then it gives me a week to think and write at least the chapter minimum unless my brain decides to go on a joyride for this story.
> 
>  also this is how i imagine michi laughs lmao: [ LINK ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUFh9MQAb5c)
> 
> feedback appreciated!  
> like seriously please give any sort of feedback bc it really keeps me motivated if ik that ppl want to read more of this story and are interested   
> even if it's a simple comment as 'this is good keep going!!'
> 
> work is unbeta'd and garbage per usual


End file.
